Improvement in blank account-books



UNITED STATES PATENT CEEICE.

CHARLES HOPKINS, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

IMPROVEMENT IN BLANK ACCOUNT-BOOKS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 6,905, dated November 27, 1849.

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES HOPKINS, of the eity,eounty, and State of New York, have invented new and useful Improvements in Blank Account-Books; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the principle or character which distinguishes them from all other things before known, and of the manner of making, construct-ing, and using the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, making part of this specification, in which- Figure lis a section of a ledger constructed on my improved plan; Fig. 2, a like section with the cover open, and Figs. 3 and 4 face and back views of one section of a ledger.

The same letters indicate like parts in all the figures.

The first part of my invention consists in uniting together the blank leaves and inner covers, and uniting them on each side of the back with a strip of metal (or other suitable material) formed with hinged knuckles, when this is combined with the outer cover or binding, made separately, and also provided with corresponding hinge-strips at the inside of the back, so that the cover can be attac-hed to or detached from the book by simply uniting the hinge-stripsV of the book and cover bymeans of rods of wire passing into the eyes or loops of the hinge-knuckles; and the second part of my invention consists in making the book into sections, each section being bound separately and provided with hinged strips-such as above indicated-so that the several sections can be connected together or separated, and also connected with or disconnected from the outer cover or binding, whereby a continuous ledger or account-book may be made, the several sections as they are Iilled up being removed and other sections put in.

In the accompanying drawings, a represents the diiferent sections of a book, each being bound up separately. In uniting the back of each section strips b, of leather, cloth, or other suitable flexible substance, are connected in some strong manner with and placed across the back at proper distances apart, and with the ends projecting sufficiently beyond the sides to be attached by riveting or otherwise with two strips of sheet metal e c, one edge of each strip being even, or nearly so, with the back of the leaves, and the strips are formed on each edge with loops or eyes d, like the knuckles of a hinge. In this way all the sections of the book are bound separately, and the several sections are united by bringing the knuckles of the contiguous metal strips together and inserting wires e e through the eyes, loops, or knuckles of the metal strips, which binds all the sections together into one book.

The outer cover fof the book is made in any manner desired or known to book-binders; but at the inner edge of each iap and at their junction with the back are secured metal strips g y by riveting or otherwise, the inner edge of these strips being formed with hingeknuckles, in manner similar to and corresponding with those on the sections of the book, so that the hinge-strips of the book can be united to the hinge-strips of the cover by means of wire rods 7L h, and these securely attach the cover to the book in a manner which will admit of opening and closing the book freely, and yet admit of removing the whole or any portion of the book from the cover to be transferred to another cover or shifted from one part of the book to another at pleasure.

Instead of making the book into sections to be united in the manner described, the book can be formed whole with a hinge-strip at each side of the back to be connected with the cover. This will facilitate the transfer of a book from one cover to another-as, for instance, after a book has been filled up it may be transferred to another cover to be put away, and which therefore need not be so expensive as one in constant use, while a new book can be inserted in the durable and expensive cover for constant use; but when the book is made in sections the dilferent sections can be removed as they are filled up and other blank sections inserted, thus presenting the means of making a continuous book and avoiding the necessity of transferring columns. rlhese are some of the advantages of my improvements; but there are others of minor importance not necessary to enumerate.

lVhat I claim my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

l. Connecting the leaves of a book with the cover by means of hinged strips attached to the back of the book and lo the cover, so that they can be connected or disconnected byv means of Wires passing through the eyes or knuckles of the hinge-strips, substantially as described, whereby the book can be disconnected from or connected with the cover, as described.

2. Making a book in sections, when the secl 

